All of these 1990 – 92 Coliseum Videos are such huge memories. I instantly recognized the covers of these tapes from all the neighborhood video stores back in the day. Like Mega Matches, this is definitely a tape I remember Matt and myself renting a time or two, probably with some of my other wrestling pals too. We were all nuts for Coliseum Videos during this era. I eventually picked up a VHS copy of my own, so I’ve seen this one quite a bit over the years.
Just like the first Battle of the Superstars, which I watched and reviewed last summer, Sean Mooney is doing an absolutely grating military impression. This time he’s on some base, wandering around army stuff and introducing the matches. Normally I like Mooney’s wacky segments, but these were borderline fucking unwatchable.
1) Rowdy Roddy Piper defeated WWF IC Champion Mr. Perfect (w/ Bobby Heenan) via count-out at 12:17 when Piper knocked Perfect from the top turnbuckle to the floor after the two men brawled around ringside (2/18/91; Orlando, FL; Arena)
A real wild match to open the tape. I love seeing these wacky gems scattered throughout these Coliseum Videos. I can’t recall ever seeing any other Piper-Perfect matches, other than them being on opposing teams at Series 89. Lots of crazy Piper antics in this match. He pulls off Mr. Perfect’s singlet for some reason, using it as a weapon, and Perfect’s wrestling in plain black tights for most of the match. For whatever reason, the singlet is the story of the match, as later Perfect takes the time to put it back on. WTF! The action is crazy throughout, with Piper and Perfect battling all over the place as you’d expect. Piper even kicks out of the perfect plex, which surprised me. Not surprising though was this match ending in a double countout. The majority of Piper’s matches end in some kind of bullshit finish, so you knew that was coming. The brawl continued after the bell with Piper getting the moral victory. Fantastic match!
2) The Nasty Boys (w/ Jimmy Hart) defeated the Bushwhackers at 7:49 when Brian Knobs pinned Butch after Jerry Sags hit an elbow off the middle turnbuckle behind the referee’s back as Butch had Knobs covered (1/21/91; Madison Square Garden)
Well, the one sort of cool thing about this match is that this is the debut of the Nasty Boys in MSG (super cool to see MSG on the tapes now after having been there in person!). This is the same match I’ll be seeing a hundred more times if I continue watching through the Coliseum Video catalog. Sigh. I actually like the Nasty Boys as a team; they had great matches against the Harts and LOD, but fuck, why did they always end up wrestling the fucking Bushwhackers? Nasty Boys win after some lame cheating.
3) WWF Tag Team Champion Bret Hart pinned the Barbarian at 4:09 with a sunset flip (11/24/90; Madison Square Garden)
You gotta be fucking kidding me! This is the same match that was on the previously released tape, Mega Matches! Talk about lazy! Did they not double check this?
4) Jake Roberts defeated Kato (w/ Mr. Fuji & Pat Tanaka) via disqualification at 7:03 when Tanaka interfered (2/18/91; Orlando Arena)
Hahaha! Wow, this is random! It’s sure fun seeing Jake tangle with the Orient Express. As I said in my comments on the first match, I just love seeing this kind of crazy shit on these videos. The whole match is focused on Kato trying to avoid the DDT, consulting with Mr. Fuji and Tanaka at ringside. Lord Alfred Hayes calls him “Kah-to” which had me laughing. I was in disbelief at the finish, as Jake finally DDTs Kato, but Tanaka jumps in for the DQ! What the fuck! Why did they have to protect “Kah-to”? Why not just have Jake go over clean? Much like Piper, so many of Jake’s matches have these bullshit finishes. Hilarious.
Oh joy! Up next – a profile on Hacksaw Jim Duggan! Duggan’s entertaining as always in his segments. The guy is so damn over-the-top it’s hard not to like these bits, even if they’re completely stupid. Hacksaw shows us his 2×4 museum, which is just a shed with some 2x4s on the walls. Much like a bad radio show segment, this goes on way too long. Later, Duggan’s in the lumberyard and has some old fart cut him the perfect 2×4.
5) Jim Duggan (w/ Hulk Hogan) defeated WWF World Champion Sgt. Slaughter (w/ Gen. Adnan) via disqualification in a flag match at 12:58 when Gen. Adnan prevented the pinfall after Hogan interfered and hit the champion in the back with Duggan’s 2×4 (3/15/91; Madison Square Garden)
Man, this was far better than I expected, and I was expecting complete shit. This is a later Slaughter title defense, as Mania VII was only weeks away. Duggan is insanely over and the crowd goes even crazier when Hogan comes down to be in his corner. Hogan was decked out in his awesome desert storm attire, which he often wore in this feud with Slaughter. It was a spirited brawl and Slaughter dictated a big chunk of the match. Adnan and Slaughter even got the better of Hogan a few times, which I didn’t remember. The crowd was going molten when Hogan hit Slaughter with the 2×4 and it looked like Duggan was about to win the title. Of course Adnan interfered for the DQ. After the match, Slaughter and Adnan laid an absolute beating into Hogan and Duggan. Just beat the ever loving shit out of them with the 2×4 and flag until refs came from the back. Man, this was really enjoyable and had a surprising conclusion.
6) Jim Duggan pinned Demolition Smash (w/ Mr. Fuji) with the running clothesline at 6:12 after Smash almost accidentally hit Fuji on the ring apron (4/16/91; Cedar Rapids, IA)
Woah, talk about random! I looked into it, and Demolition’s last televised match was at Wrestlemania VII. They did compete once more in Japan as a team, but that was it. Crush was gone for a year and Smash hung around as a jobber to the stars between Mania and late summer, then was repackaged into the Repo Man. Super cool to see this weird, albeit sad, era of Smash and the end of Demolition, who went out with a total whimper. The match itself is good too. A basic power battle, but Smash put Duggan to the test. It’s remarkable how much Darsow changed his physical appearance and wrestling style from Smash to Repo Man. Almost an entirely different move set to fit the character. I’ve always enjoyed Darsow’s work, all his different characters.
7) WWF World Champion the Ultimate Warrior pinned Randy Savage (w/ Sensational Sherri) with a gorilla press slam and splash at 1:31 (10/30/90; Ft. Wayne, IN)
Fuck, why even include this on the tape? This was obviously from the very end of a marathon night of TV tapings. Savage is barely in costume and looks like he wants to get the hell out of there, the crowd is already putting on their coats and the Warrior isn’t even wearing face paint! On commentary, Hayes and Mooney are hyping this up to be an epic encounter, but it’s an epic swerve instead. Warrior 100% steamrolls Savage and pins him, and Savage and Sherri get the hell out of there asap. Warrior celebrates for a while as the crowd heads for the exits. This was likely after 4 hours of TV tapings, but why the hell release this? Mooney and Hayes feign shock. I remember as a kid watching this with Matt or someone, and them being so impressed with the Warrior destroying Macho.
8) Ted Dibiase pinned Tugboat at 6:41 with a roll up after Tugboat hit the corner (1/29/91; Savannah, GA)
Hahaha, I swear Tugboat was being booed in this match! I liked seeing this weird matchup, and Dibiase was great throughout, trying to outsmart the Tugster. Tugboat had the weirdest career. From being skyrocketed to main events as a result of being Hogan’s on-screen friend, to being dumped by Hogan at Rumble 91, to becoming a borderline jobber to the stars and being left off Mania VII, to finally turning heel and getting a push in the Disasters by summer 91. So strange to look back on. Dibiase picks up a singles win, which is always great to see.
9) The Legion of Doom & Davey Boy Smith fought Hercules, Paul Roma, & the Warlord (w/ Slick) to a double disqualification at 7:15 when all six men began brawling in the ring (1/8/91; ?)
Cool match to end the tape! There were more hits than misses on this video, and some real neat gems in the mix. This was an awesome battle of powers and unfortunately it ended way too quick. I liked seeing the Bulldog mix it up with Hercules and LOD in there with the Warlord.
the RepoDan Wrestling Institution 